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Biomechanics training and clinical service is at an infantile stage in India. An urgent need to integrate clinical biomechanics in healthcare motivated Dr. Rajani Mullerpatan to establish a biomechanics center at MGM Institute of Health Sciences, Navi Mumbai, India. Initial positive and encouraging interaction with Prof. Julie Steele (ISB President 2009-2011) and thereafter continued support from Dr. Andrea Hemmerich and the ISB Executive Council is of immense help to establish this lab as part of the EDC program. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 2013 between MGM School of Physiotherapy at MGM IHS, Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IITB), Cardiff University, UK, and the ISB to structure and foster teamwork. Prof. Robert Van Deursen, Cardiff University, is providing technical support in design and installation of the lab. Dr. Mullerpatan is working with Prof. B. Ravi, IITB, to seek support from Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, for lab establishment. The space for the lab is provided by MGM Trust. We are awaiting a generous donation of force plates from AMTI and potential support from Vicon for a motion analysis system. Installation of the force plates and motion analysis system, along with existing resources, will allow collaborative work between the four main collaborating organizations in the form of training and research in biomechanics.

Robert van Deursen visits the MGMIHS project

On 25 May 2014, Professor Robert van Deursen travelled from the UK to Navi-Mumbai in order to spend one week with Professor Mullerpatan and her colleagues planning the clinical biomechanics lab and continuing work on collaborative research and educational opportunities. Robert's account to the ISB and photos of the trip are included below. On June 2nd he wrote:

It was intense with meetings from Monday PM to Saturday late PM. We got a lot done.

The agenda items were:

1) Movement analysis installation:

We had 2 meetings with the civil and electrical engineer in charge of the building work on site. We were able to resolve a lot of misunderstandings about what the lab should look like. The two gentlemen were very resourceful to adapt their plans to ensure the facilities will be fit for purpose. The second meeting with them was in the presence of Vivek, the Vicon agent in India.

Further meetings about the lab were held with Rajani and researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai. This helped to set objectives for this part of the project. Clarity will be required about the exact dimensions of the force plates supplied. Also delivery of epoxy, rails, etc for installation of the force plates will be essential. Clamps for the Vicon cameras will also be important to include in the delivery. A pit for the force plates and standard pipes fitted around the room for the cameras will be arranged by MGM Institute of Health Science as part of the renovation.

These projects are carried out through a collaboration between MGM Institute of Health Science (Dr Mullerpatan); Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai (Prof Ravi; Dr Tandaiya); Cardiff University (Prof van Deursen); and ISB (Dr Hemmerich). We had numerous meetings about these different projects; discussed with students currently on a project or intending to participate; and discussed grant funding opportunities for these projects. One submitted DST grant has made it to the final round and Dr Mullerpatan presented at the review committee. This committee will make a decision in a few weeks.

3) PG Course in Clinical Biomechanics

We identified that it would be good to start with a ‘taster’ course in clinical biomechanics to be provided for engineers, orthopaedic surgeons and physiotherapists as the main target group. The course still needs to be written but a rough outline was agreed. The intention is to build capacity in the area of clinical biomechanics researchers.

What cannot be easily explained in the report is that meetings were held in various parts of Mumbai and therefore a considerable amount of time was spend in vehicles travelling through heavy congestions. Some of our best meetings were held during these travels.